


Truth or Dare

by DinoKieran



Category: Steven Universe (Cartoon)
Genre: Drinking Games, Drunk Sex, Drunken Confessions, Drunken Shenanigans, Drunkenness, F/F, Friends to Lovers, Partying, Peridot is a useless lesbian
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-22
Updated: 2020-09-22
Packaged: 2021-03-08 03:06:55
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 17,202
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26598790
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DinoKieran/pseuds/DinoKieran
Summary: Peridot has never been about parties, or drinking, or loud music; but it turns out when an old friend asks her to join her one night, she finds it hard to resist.Not because she had a crush on her or anything. Nope. Not at allPart of an exchange with my good friend Cerussite!
Relationships: Lapis Lazuli/Peridot (Steven Universe)
Comments: 4
Kudos: 76





	Truth or Dare

**Author's Note:**

  * For [cerussite](https://archiveofourown.org/users/cerussite/gifts).



> Hi all!
> 
> This one-shot was supposed to be a companion piece for art that Cerussite (@Leadspar on twitter) drew to celebrate 1,000 followers, which you can view here: https://twitter.com/leadspar/status/1244953337625079813?s=20
> 
> As you can see... that was posted back in March, so this has been is significantly delayed. However, I wanted to get it done for her and of course, share it with all of you! I hope you enjoy it, please leave a comment or a kudos if you did.
> 
> Happy Reading!

Peridot scuffed her shoes along the pathway, hands shoved deep into the pockets of her jeans. Why was she doing this? She could be back in her dorm right now, in bed…

“I’m glad you’re coming with me, Peri.” A soft voice brought her out of her moody mindset, green eyes flicking up to meet the blue ones of the tanned woman walking beside her. Lapis; the only woman in Beach City capable of dragging Peridot out of her room and into the outside world.

They’d met each other in the Sophomore year of high school. Lapis had moved to Beach City a week or so prior and had enrolled shortly after. They never really… interacted that first year; Lapis had mostly kept to herself, never going out of her way to talk to anyone unless they approached her first. In hindsight, they _could_ have become friends earlier, but Peridot being the useless lesbian that she was, felt too scared to approach who she presumed to be a very intimidating, very stunning girl (a fact she’d kept hidden from Lapis to that very day).

It wasn’t until Junior year that they began interacting. They shared many classes together and ended up being seated together in one. It took a while and several team projects, but they eventually began to talk more and more until, before they knew it, they’d become friends. As they got to know each other more and more, the initial attraction Peridot had felt for Lapis slowly but surely blossomed into a full-blown crush. She kept it to herself, and squashed it down, as she had no intention of sharing her feelings with the other girl.

It would have been far too awkward, in her opinion, anyway. 

Towards the end of Senior year they were as thick as thieves, barely spending a minute apart; well, almost. By that time, Lapis had really begun coming out of her shell and, as a result, ended up in and out of various relationships. She wasn’t shy about her sexuality, and the variety in the gender identities of her partners was evidence of that. Peridot, being the supportive friend that she was, stuck by Lapis’ side throughout, comforting her after breakups and encouraging her to make a move when she’d come to her for advice. All the while, however, she was silently jealous to see her best friend getting romantically involved with anyone, regardless of gender. To her, none of them were ever good enough. Lapis deserved nothing but the very best.

They were able to spend a lot more one-on-one time together after graduation, but this was bittersweet for both of them as Lapis planned to spend the next two years at a local community college while Peridot had been accepted into a specialist University in Empire City, many hours away. They both knew it was going to be tough, especially since neither of them had made any effort to make any friendships outside their own for a few years now, but they promised each other they’d stay in touch. 

They talked on and off for the first few months, but Peridot found herself becoming more and more involved in her studies and as a result, found it harder to keep up consistent replies. Lapis, too, seemed to be less responsive as the months went by; Peridot had reasoned, sadly, that her chill nature had attracted new friends, and her former classmate had become less of a priority. So, it came to a surprise to her when, after almost two years of next to no contact, she received a message from her old friend.

As it turned out, Lapis had enrolled in a state college that was only a few miles away from where Peridot ended. What were the odds? She was initially stunned, but the excitement over rekindling her friendship overrode whatever reservations she had. Lapis had admitted to her later that she’d been hesitant to message her after all this time, but the possibility of talking to her again had motivated her to do it. She’d missed her, apparently.

Those words had made Peridot’s stomach flip; she hadn’t been expecting to be missed despite their prior bond. She was a pretty reserved person, after all. At least, when it came to maintaining friendships.

Several days later and it was as if they’d never been apart. Of course, they’d both grown and changed a lot in the time they’d been apart, but the connection they’d had appeared to have remained somewhat intact. It also turned out that despite their respective colleges being a few miles apart, Peridot’s dorm was only a few blocks from an apartment Lapis rented with a couple of roommates. This discovery equally stunned both of them and immediately led them to plan a meetup.

Both were shy and awkward at first, Peridot more so, but she fell back into her old ways and the two began to hang out more and more, Lapis relying on her blonde companion for regular social interactions due to still being new to the area and being the type to become annoyed/anxious around those she wasn’t familiar with. As they spent more and more time in each other’s company, Peridot had slowly rediscovered her old feelings for Lapis... but she remained in denial. This wasn’t the time or the place, and besides, Lapis didn’t seem to reciprocate anyway from what she could gather. Not that she’d hit on her or anything, perish the _thought_ , but she’d definitely appeared more aloof than interested.

As of right now, she’d been roped into going to some sort of party. While she’d spent her time focusing almost entirely on schoolwork, Lapis had been balancing her time between studying and weekend parties she’d been invited to through acquaintances she’d made in the first semester. It took her a while, but eventually, she felt comfortable enough in her new social circle to invite Peridot along. The blonde had been extremely hesitant as she didn’t really enjoy large social gatherings; sure, she had those she would call friends, but hanging out with them mainly revolved around online chat rooms and the like, not loud obnoxious parties filled with intoxicated folks.

That being said… Lapis had pleaded with her, saying she really wanted her to be there with her and, well, Peridot found it hard to say no to those big blue eyes. The pout too; damn Lapis and her mastery of the puppy dog pout. In all honesty, though… she really didn’t want to miss the opportunity to spend more time with her best friend, regardless of the situation.

“So...” She chewed her lip nervously as she glanced up at her companion, “How long do these sorts of parties go on for, anyway? Is there a schedule?”

Lapis snorted, shaking her head,

“Pfft, nah, not in the traditional sense. If Amethyst had her way, it’d probably go on all night and into the next day, but that all depends on whether Pearl shows up. If she does, I’m sure she’ll be kicking us out when she feels it’s ‘too late for those sorts of shenanigans’ or whatever.” 

Peridot wrinkled her nose. She knew who Pearl was, they’d come into contact with each other before during competitions; she’d viewed her as the uptight sort, always with her nose in the air and such. Amethyst though… Judging from what Lapis had told of her, she was a hyperactive ball of chaos and excitement, prone to being messy and obnoxious. Neither of them sounded like the sort of folks she’d want to spend _any_ amount of time with, but, then again, Lapis liked them. The taller woman always seemed to have a good read on people, and her initial gut reaction was right more often than not; therefore, if she thought they were good people, then Peridot would take that as the truth.

Wouldn’t stop her from being apprehensive, though.

Her thought process was once again broken as a loud shout came from up ahead.

“Lappy! Yooo, Dude!” A short, tanned woman with a mess of unruly purple hair had materialized in a doorway a few yards in front of them. She came barrelling down the path and almost tackled Lapis, causing her to stagger backwards a little and let out a wheeze that turned into laughter.

“Ooof! Hey, Amethyst,” She said with a snort, as she ruffled the shorter one’s hair, “Party’s already started, huh? You smell like a brewery!” 

_Ah, so this was Amethyst._ Peridot observed the interaction with a certain degree of hesitancy; this woman was indeed as hyperactive as she’d presumed her to be. 

“Hell yeah it has! Well, sorta. Not for me though,” Amethyst scratched her head, “some asshole pre-gamed a little too hard and was so sloshed by the time he got here that he ended up spilling a drink everywhere, I just got caught in the crossfire.” She shrugged, then glanced over at Peridot curiously as she relinquished Lapis from her grasp. “Oh! Who’s this? You got a girlfriend now, Laps?” 

Peridot’s face reddened all the way up to her ears at that remark, her mouth opening to protest, but Lapis got there before her, giggling and giving Amethyst a playful shove.

“Ah, fuck off. This is Peridot! I told you I was inviting her, remember?”

“ _Ohhhh._ ” Amethyst grinned, “you’re the high school buddy! Awesome!” She quickly slung an arm around Peridot’s shoulders before she could even register it, “Nice to meet ya! Fellow member of the shorty squad, eh? Eh?”

Peridot stared at her, feeling a little overwhelmed, but was quick to give an awkward grin.

“Heh, nice to meet you too?” She replied shyly, to which Amethyst chuckled and removed her arm.

“Course it is, I’m a _delight._ ” She gave the blonde a wink and finger guns.

“Pfft, more like a demon.”

“Hey! Like you have room to talk, Lapis,” Amethyst smirked and nudged Peridot as the three of them began walking “just for that, I think Peri and I are gonna have a little chat. You knew each other back in high school, so I’m willing to bet she knows about _all_ the cringy stuff little teen Lapis got up to, eh?”

“Pfft, you wouldn’t get anything, I was nothing but cringe-less in High School. Even if I was, Peridot likes me too much. She wouldn’t _dare_ say anything.” Lapis responded with a grin and folded her arms. “Right, Peri?”

Peridot couldn’t help but chuckle a little at that and gave the bluenette a look. She knew all the awkward stuff that girl had gotten up to and could share awkward moments that would make anyone cringe, but Lapis was right… she wouldn’t dare share anything. She valued Lapis’ privacy too much.

“Oh, yeah... R-Right” she gave another grin and shoved her hands in her pockets. Amethyst glanced between them, then shrugged.

“Whatever, ya party-poopers, I’m gonna head back inside before things get too crazy. See if you can keep up!” She jogged off ahead of them, Lapis rolling her eyes and giving Peridot an amused look.

“Don’t mind her, she’s always been chaotic but parties tend to enhance it; under all that loudness she’s got a good heart,” She gave Peridot an affectionate pat on the shoulder, “I think you two will get along.”

“I...” Peridot chewed her lip. She wasn’t all too fond of the idea of spending a prolonged amount of time with Amethyst, but if it made Lapis happy, she’d give it a shot at the very least. “I hope so, I trust your judgement.”

Lapis smiled, an unreadable expression in her eyes as she did so, before ruffling Peridot’s hair,

“I should hope so! We’ve known each other for long enough.” She chuckled as Peridot pouted and tried in vain to restyle her hair, “Come on, let’s see if we can find Amethyst, yeah?”

Ah. Right. The party. She’d almost forgotten. The nerves came back and the thoughts of backing out cropped up again, only to be immediately squashed when Lapis’ hand grasped onto hers, tugging her forward. 

“Come on,” Lapis said softly with a smile, “it’ll be fun! You can just stick by me the whole time if you want, I know what you’re like with big crowds.” Peridot hesitated, then gave a nod and squeezed her friend’s hand lightly as she let her take the lead.

As soon as they took a step through the door Peridot’s ears were bombarded by a cacophony of sounds. Shouts, off-key singing, cursing... All with the constant undertone of a loud, pounding baseline. The blonde winced but pushed forward, refusing to relinquish her grip on Lapis’ hand at risk of being lost among the throng of drunk and rowdy teens. It was only when they reached the kitchen, a surprisingly empty room, that she felt Lapis’ fingers slip from her own. Amethyst, seated atop the kitchen counter, waved them over excitedly.

“About time! You two ready for some drinks?” She clapped her hands and grinned, Lapis chuckled.

“You know it! I’ll have my usual please, Miss Bartender.”

“You got it, babe.” Amethyst gave another set of finger guns as she hopped off the counter. “What about you, blondie? Whatcha fancy?”

Peridot stared blankly at her for a moment. She rarely drank at all, in fact, she couldn’t even remember the last time any alcohol had touched her lips. She scratched the back of her head.

“Oh uh… I don’t know? I’ve never been good at remembering names of that sorta stuff.” She didn’t want to let either of them know how clueless she was in the way of booze. She needed to fit in, right?.

“Oh! Get her something sweet,” Lapis interjected, grinning “trust me, Peridot will drink _anything_ with high sugar content.” She snickered.

“Righty-o! Something strong for the lovely lady and something sweet for the nerd, leave it to me!” Amethyst hopped across the room and began perusing the vast selection of alcoholic beverages stacked on the dining table. Again, Peridot’s nerves set in, something that Lapis apparently picked up on as she felt her hand on her shoulder, giving it a light squeeze.  
  
“Hey, you’ll be fine Peri, trust me. A little alcohol in your system will do wonders for the nerves; It really helped me the first few times I came here.”

“You… party a lot, huh?”

“Eh, not really,” Lapis shrugged “Sure I’m here almost every Saturday, but I don’t always get super involved, you know? Sometimes it’s just nice to get tipsy with friends and talk shit,” She chuckled. “I’ll admit, I’m curious to see what that’ll be like for you. I want to meet tipsy Peri.”

Peridot flushed a little and twiddled her thumbs; she didn’t have the heart to tell Lapis she most likely wouldn’t be getting even the slightest bit buzzed, let alone tipsy or, god forbid, _drunk._ Alcohol never really appealed to her all that much, especially when it came to the flavour. Lapis was right, she was more of a sweet tooth than anything and most alcohols tasted bitter or sour, some to the point where she’d have to make a conscious effort to stop herself from gagging.

Still, she’d try just this once, for Lapis.

“Here you go, ladies!” Amethyst hollered as she came strutting back over to them, handing Lapis a bottle of what looked to be some type of beer and Peridot a small glass. After being handed her own drink, Peridot looked down at the glass in her hand and stared hesitantly at the luminous green liquid contained within.

“...What is it?” She asked curiously. Amethyst grinned.

“Oh, just a little sugary drink, try it! I know it looks artificial as all hell, but I think you’ll like it.”

“Hm...” Peridot glanced up to see both girls looking at her expectantly, humour in their eyes. She swallowed before bringing the glass to her lips, preparing herself for the overwhelming taste of chemicals. 

She swallowed, licking her lips and blinking in surprise. Instead, her taste buds had been greeted by a flavour, not unlike that of a regular soda.

“What…? Are you sure this is alcohol?” She asked, baffled.

“One hundred percent! It’s a fruity thing, more flavour than booze, you’ll like it!”

Peridot eyed the glass with suspicion once again but took another, longer sip; if it really was alcohol, then maybe this wouldn’t be so bad after all. She felt Lapis’ hand on her shoulder and glanced up to see her smiling at her, head tilted slightly.

“See? I told you this wouldn’t be so bad.” 

Peridot looked back down at her glass, trying to deny how much that sweet, friendly expression made her stomach twist.

“Mhm… I guess...” she muttered shyly and took a swig of her glass, this time in an effort to cool the heat she could feel radiating off her face.

“Alright you two, I’ve gotta dip, folks won’t be able to get their drinks without their trusty bartender!” Amethyst gave the pair one last grin and turned on her heel, “Catch you later!” 

Lapis snorted and rolled her eyes, glancing back down at Peridot as their fellow conversationalist disappeared amongst a gaggle of already drunk partygoers.

“So, how you liking things so far?” Lapis said as she took another swig of her drink. Peridot hummed and shrugged her shoulders.

“Uh… it’s not bad?” She admitted shyly, “at least, not as bad as I thought it was gonna be. Sure it’s pretty loud, but everyone seems to be staying out of trouble, for the most part.”

“Oh yeah, as much as Amethyst loves a good party, she has to keep things under control, for most of the night at least.” Lapis chuckled “It’ll probably get rowdier later on when everyone’s got a few more drinks down them, but I tend to tap out at that point. I’m down to party as much as the next girl, but getting blackout drunk? Not a fan.” Swirling the drink in its bottle she ruffled Peridot’s hair with her other hand “I’m glad you’re enjoying yourself. It’s… nice having you here, I’ve been wanting to introduce you to this side of my friendship group for a while now. They’ve known about you for some time... Well, Amethyst has, so it feels good for there to be a face for them to put to a name, you know?”

Peridot gave a small nod before sipping her drink again. So Lapis had told her other friends about her a long while ago… That gave her reason to smile a little. She wasn’t used to being talked about, not positively, anyway. Lapis had wanted her to meet her new friends, regardless of Peridot’s own feelings about herself. It was flattering. 

She felt… wanted.

“Right,” Lapis said after downing the rest of her drink. “While it’s still quiet, I’m gonna take a bathroom break right quick.”

Peridot glanced up at her. She was leaving her alone already? Granted, it was only for a short while, but still. She stayed quiet though. What would have been the point?

“I’ll be 5, 10 minutes tops alright? Don’t go anywhere.” Lapis teased as she placed her bottle on the counter, “be right back!”

Peridot sighed through her nose as she watched her leave. This situation wasn’t exactly ideal; she’d never been a fan of being left alone in a stranger’s house, let alone surrounded by even more strangers in various stages of inebriation, regardless of how long or short that amount of time alone was. 

However, before she had much time to dwell on that thought, Amethyst was by her side again, somehow having made it there without her realizing. Amethyst grinned when she noticed just how startled the other girl was by her sudden appearance, leaning on the counter and chuckling.

“Hey, Blondie! Lapis left you alone, eh?” 

“Uh… only for a short while.” Peridot replied shyly, “Bathroom break. She’ll be back soon.” Amethyst nodded and glanced down at Peridot’s half-empty glass.

“Gotcha… how you liking things so far? Lapis said you’re not too keen on parties and all that, so I figured I’d check in on ya.” Peridot blinked. That was surprising. She hadn’t expected someone she’d only just met to be going out of their way to keep an eye on her. Especially Amethyst, of all people.

Nevertheless, she continued on with the conversation; it would be rude not to.

“Honestly? Not too bad, really. Though, to be fair, I haven’t been here long enough to truly experience it. Thanks, though.” She took another sip of her drink and attempted a smile. Amethyst nodded and patted her shoulder.

“Don’t blame ya! I love stuff like this but I know a lot of uh… What was it Pearl said, again? Oh! Introverts. I know a lot of introverts find large groups hard. Heck, Lapis sometimes gets uncomfortable when things get too loud. However...” She grinned again, “Alcohol can be an excellent gateway to enjoying yourself. Lowers your inhibitions and such. Speaking of that, actually, whatcha think about yours? Not too bad, right?” 

“Yeah, I like it,” Peridot replied before taking a bigger sip, “most of the time alcohol just tastes like pure chemicals to me, but this tastes like a regular carbonated drink.” She smiled, “if this type of alcohol exists I might have to try it more often.”

Amethyst grinned and rubbed her hands together gleefully.

“Excellent! And speaking of that, that company actually makes a lot of different flavours. I don’t have all of them because not a lot of folks here like the overly sweet stuff, but there’s a few other flavours you can try out tonight, if you want?”

Peridot’s eyes lit up, and she nodded excitedly.

“Oh sure! Like right now or…?”

“Ah, well, you’d have to finish your current drink before I give you any more,” Amethyst replied, “It’s a pain but Pearl insists we stick to just one cup per person, saves on washing up you know?”

“... Won’t that cause a mix up in flavours?” Peridot replied, raising an eyebrow.

“Normally folks just stick to one type of drink the entire night, but I can always just give it a quick rinse under the tap before pouring a new drink. Might water things down a little, but eh, it’s the price we gotta pay to get the chance to throw these parties in the first place. So, when you’ve finished that one, I can go grab another bottle for you.”

Peridot nodded, then to Amethyst’s surprise brought the cup to her lips and downed the remaining artificially coloured liquid before handing it to her.

“Alright, let’s try a different one.”

Amethyst stared at her in surprise, but quickly took the cup from the other girl’s grasp with a chuckle.

“Sure thing, blondie. Be right back!”

The first flavour Amethyst returned with was just as sweet, but Peridot wasn’t a fan. There was a strong taste of mixed berries which became too overwhelming, even for her. Thankfully, she’d only been given half a glass, so despite her mild distaste for the dark purple liquid, she was able to finish it quickly before returning the glass to her new drinking companion. The second was a similar colour to the first and, despite her initial reservations, was actually more enjoyable than the first. It made sense, she supposed, since she’d always been a lover of citrus-flavoured drinks. 

Slowly but steadily, the alcohol she’d consumed began to take effect. She wasn’t sure how many glasses of the pale green liquid she’d consumed, but it was definitely a lot. Amethyst was also completely right about it lowering her inhibitions; she was feeling more and more relaxed as time went by, chatting cheerfully with the other girl with the nerves all but dissipated at this point. It turned out that, despite her initial misgivings, the two of them were getting along really well. She found herself discussing things animatedly, sometimes accidentally spilling small amounts of her beverage as she did so, but neither of them seemed to care very much. 

It was a party after all. They were there to have a good time, right?

“Hey, tell you what,” Amethyst said, still grinning, “since you’re the only one drinking that green stuff, how about I just bring you the bottle? Would certainly make things a little easier.”

Peridot, now more than a little buzzed, giggled and nodded before finishing her glass once again.

“Hehe, sure! If it saves you from, uh...” She trailed off, a vacant look in her eyes. “Ah! Yeah, if it saves you from going back and forth and stuff. Heh, sorry.” She giggled again. Before she knew it, a large, bell-shaped bottle was being thrust into her free hand, which she grasped somewhat clumsily. She paused for a moment, wondering just how she was going to pour the liquid from the larger vessel into the small cup in her other hand safely. Thankfully, Amethyst gave her a solution before she had time to even ask.

“Yo, when you’re finished with that cup, you might as well just drink it straight from the bottle.” She said, “save you some time and all that, right?”

Peridot blinked, then nodded in agreement. If she’d been sober, she would have considered such behaviour trashy at best, but in her booze-addled brain, it made perfect sense. Who cares what she looked like while doing it? It didn’t take her long to empty her glass, which was taken quickly from her by a helpful Amethyst, and her attention turned to the bottle. There was still a surprising amount of liquid still in it, despite her having drunk what she perceived to be a lot of alcohol. Without a second thought, she lifted it to her lips and eagerly took a big gulp. As she did so she heard Amethyst suddenly raise her voice in a cheer that turned into a chant.

“Chug! Chug! Chug!” She cried out excitedly, which prompted those nearby to reflexively join in on the chanting; if it weren’t for her current state having so many people shouting in her direction would have made Peridot anxious as hell. This time, however, not so much. The adrenaline kicked in and she felt her ego boosted by the cheers surrounding her. 

Was this what it felt like to properly socialize?

She gripped the neck of the bottle tighter and began swallowing gulp after gulp. The carbonation stung the back of her throat but she didn’t care; she had been hyped up and so desperately wanted to complete the task laid out before her. She wasn’t sure how long she’d been drinking, but a familiar voice cutting through the bedlam quickly brought her out of her daze.

“Peridot?”

She almost dropped the bottle and spluttered as she spilled some of the remaining booze down the front of her shirt. Feeling a blush spreading across her cheeks and down her neck, she shifted her gaze up to meet the pair of concerned blue eyes. She thought she’d be embarrassed, but nope, if anything she felt excitement at the appearance of her friend.

“Heeey, Lapis!” She said cheerily, her words slurring slightly as she pushed herself up from her position leant against the counter. She staggered a little but regained her balance with the help of a sniggering Amethyst. Lapis stepped towards her, her expression shifting to one of amusement.

“Looks like someone’s been having fun, hm?” She teased as she reached Peridot’s side, the small crowd of now disappointed onlookers dispersing as she did so. Peridot only giggled and swayed slightly in place as she took another sip from the almost empty bottle. The older of the two laughed softly and placed a hand on Peridot’s arm. “Come on, I think you’ve had enough, you’ve gotten pretty drunk pretty quick.”

“Nah, you’ve just been gone a long while.” Peridot replied as she finally downed the rest of the bottle and balanced it haphazardly on the countertop. Lapis seemed to tense a little at that, then she nodded reluctantly.

“Alright, good point. I’m sorry” she replied softly, still holding onto Peridot’s arm. “I bumped into someone I knew on the way back downstairs, guess I lost track of time during that conversation. I was kinda worried about you, but it seems I didn’t need to be.” She gave Amethyst a grateful smile, to which the short girl nodded and grinned in response. Peridot, starting to have trouble focusing at this point, hiccuped and nodded.

“Aha, yeahh… Amethyst kept me company and uh… got me this cool drink… stuff.” She gestured clumsily in the direction of her party companion. “I think I like drinking. It’s fuuun.”

Lapis, slowly beginning to guide the blonde out of the room, giggled a little.

“Alright, good to know. Now, how about we go hang out in the other room? The music’s getting pretty good, you could give dancing a try-” She paused, glancing down at her staggering companion “-Or maybe not. Don’t want you falling over.” Peridot blinked slowly and just nodded in response, confused as to why she was now having trouble seeing things clearly. Were her glasses dirty?

She was carefully deposited on a couch in the lounge while Lapis joined a group of folks on the dance floor. She’d occasionally hop back and forth checking on Peridot, who was quite happy staying seated. During that time Amethyst had brought her a couple more glasses of something she said was stronger, which Peridot was more than happy to accept. She was confused however by the lack of flavour; surely if it was stronger she should be able to taste it? But no matter, she was having fun and that’s all that mattered.

It wasn’t until an hour or so later, when the party started amping up, that she was struck by the sudden urge to use the restroom. She grumbled a little and made an effort to stand, only to wobble severely and return to her seat with an undignified yelp. She blinked, shook her head and tried again, finally getting to her feet. However, the sudden change in altitude caused the world around her to begin spinning rapidly. She tried to blink it away but to no avail, her body swaying back and forth as she took a step forward.

Only to topple forward and crash face-first onto the dancefloor.

After that, things just became a blur. She remembered being slowly lifted to her feet, the sound of concerned voices filling her ears. Once upright again she was slowly guided out, one step at a time. Her vision, still spinning, was beginning to make her eyes hurt, so she screwed them shut.

When she finally opened her eyes once more, she was momentarily confused by her surroundings. For one, it was incredibly bright. She groaned and squinted in an effort to ease the pain the sunlight was causing and slowly looked about, steadily becoming aware of the headache now pounding against the inside of her skull, and why did her throat feel so sore? Her mouth tasted as if something had curled up and died in it. She gagged. 

Suddenly, she was startled by a loud snuffle that turned into a snore. Her head whipped around (something she quickly regretted as the pressure on her skull increased tenfold) to be greeted with the sight of Lapis sat on the floor fast asleep, her head resting against the couch that Peridot was laid out on. The blonde felt her cheeks flush as she hazily took in the sight of her friend lying unconscious beside her. It was then that she began to recognise where she was.

This was Lapis’ apartment. She must have brought her back here after the party. She felt a wave of embarrassment wash over her as fragments of what happened the night before filtered back into her memory. She’d made a fool out of herself, in front of strangers, in front of Lapis! Stars, why did she drink so much? Slowly she shifted herself upright, noticing the waste bin placed conveniently on the floor near where her head would have been in case of any ‘accidents’; Lapis really had thought of everything.

The sound of her movement caused her blue-haired friend to stir, her face scrunching up as she gave a stretch before her eyes fluttered open. Their eyes met and Peridot swallowed as a small smile spread across Lapis’ face.

“Hey, you…” She said softly, her voice husky from sleep. Peridot opened her mouth to speak but grimaced as another wave of pain pulsed through her brain. Lapis’ expression shifted to one of concern, and she quickly sat up, reaching over to gently rub Peridot’s shoulder. “That bad, huh?” She asked, brow furrowed. Peridot just whined and rubbed her eyes, wanting to nod but worrying such movement would cause even more pain. She heard Lapis sigh and stand up before disappearing into the kitchen. She returned softly afterwards with a glass of water and a couple of tablets. “Here. Take these” She murmured. “Should help with the pain.”

“Thank you...” Peridot croaked, gingerly taking the proffered items and popping the tablets into her mouth. The cool water was a blessing to her sore throat, washing away the acidic taste coating the inside of her mouth. Lapis meanwhile took a seat beside her, watching her carefully and taking the glass from her when she was done.

“You really don’t drink much, do you?”

Peridot gulped, her shoulders slumping.

“No.” she confessed, “I’d never even had a full glass before.”

“You should have told me.” Lapis replied, reaching out and gently rubbing her friend’s shoulder “I wouldn’t have dragged you there if I’d had known you were so new to it all. I would have kept a closer eye on you!”

“I know… I’m sorry. I just-” Peridot felt her cheeks heating up again “I just wanted to spend time with you. I didn’t want you thinking I was a loser who didn’t drink.”

“You know I’d never think of you like that,” Lapis replied firmly, shifting in her seat and closing the distance between them. “I like you for who you are, Peri. You’re a good person, and a better friend.”

Peridot swallowed and shifted in her seat, feeling a new wave of embarrassment as she looked down at her feet. She wasn’t sure how to respond. She settled for mumbling a shy ‘thank you’ and giving an awkward smile which was reciprocated by her companion, who was quick to pull her into a gentle hug.

“Just… be honest with me from now on, okay?” Lapis said as she rubbed Peridot’s back “I’d never judge you for something like that. Well.” She smirked a little, “Unless we’re talking about your taste in TV shows.”

Peridot pouted and gave her friend a look. 

“You’re lucky I feel like crap, else I’d be unleashing my full wrath upon you. Camp Pining Hearts is an amazing show and you know it!”

Lapis snorted.

“Alright, alright. Whatever makes you happy.” She teased, poking Peridot’s nose. She got a grumble out of the blonde, but that was it.

\-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Once the painkillers had kicked in and Lapis was sure Peridot had recovered, she escorted her back to her own living quarters. Peridot had insisted she was fine on her own, but Lapis was insistent on ensuring her friend made it home safe. Despite her protests, Peridot truly didn’t mind, she could spend more time with Lapis after all.

Even though she wasn’t in much pain any more, Peridot definitely felt the effects of the alcohol for the rest of the morning and into the early afternoon; she was thankful that the party had been on a Saturday, as it gave her the whole of Sunday to relax and recuperate. She truly regretted not knowing her limits and wondered if she could ever go to something like that again, but aside from getting too drunk, she’d actually found herself having fun. Being around Lapis was fun enough on its own, but there were moments where she truly felt that she could make friends there.

So, when she found out a few days later that these parties were a weekly thing and Lapis usually attended every one of them, she shot her a message asking if she could come along. Her request was initially met with uneasiness as Lapis was concerned that it would be a repeat of last time, but Peridot promised she’d limit herself and eventually Lapis agreed.

So, once again, the two of them arrived at the dorms and were quickly welcomed inside. Peridot still found the loud music jarring and held onto Lapis’ hand as they squeezed through the large crowd gathered in the hallway. It appeared there were far more people here than last time. Of course, the quietest area would have been the kitchen, but Peridot knew going there would be a _bad_ idea, so she stuck with Lapis as they weaved their way through. 

“I think the garden might be the best bet!” Lapis shouted over the chaos, “we’ll get some fresh air, at least!” Peridot just nodded, her nerves suddenly getting the best of her as she glanced around the all too familiar dance floor. She wondered if anyone there remembered her from last time. Would they laugh at her? She cringed and clung to Lapis tighter. The tanned girl seemed to sense her discomfort and gave her hand a squeeze, gently rubbing her thumb over hers. Peridot felt a sensation akin to a bolt of lightning shoot through her at the soft touch. Her skin tingled.

Finally, they made their way out into the small, yet tidy, garden. Several cheap plastic chairs had been set out for guests to sit in, as well as a couple of tables. Peridot barely had time to truly take in her surroundings before she was startled by the loud exclamation of her name.

“Peridot!” Amethyst came bounding over, clapping the thin girl on the shoulder, “it’s good to see you!” Her face shifted from glee to concern and she stepped back, rubbing the back of her neck “Listen. I’m sorry about last time. I didn’t mean to get you that drunk, I didn’t know-”

Peridot gave a soft chuckle and raised a hand.

“Don’t be, it was my fault for not being honest to begin with. I didn’t know my own limits, you were doing what you thought was best.”

The lavender-haired girl visibly relaxed and gave a smile, clasping her hands together.

“Alright, gotcha. Still. I’m gonna have to be strict with you on the booze this time, no more bottomless refills!”

“Don’t worry” Lapis piped up “she’s promised to give a drink time to take effect before she has any more. So have I, for the record.”

Amethyst raised an eyebrow

“You? Limiting yourself? That’s a new one.”

“Pfft, can it, shorty. I’m doing it in solidarity!” Lapis said with a snort, tugging the frazzled blonde closer to her and ruffling her hair. “Now would you mind getting us something? I don’t really feel like pushing through _that_ madness again.”

Amethyst chuckled and gave a playful salute, darting back into the fray and disappearing from sight.

Peridot laughed softly at her antics, then glanced up at Lapis with a shy smile.

“You really don’t have to restrict yourself just for my sake.” She said softly “I mean, I appreciate it but I don’t want my presence to be detrimental to your experience."

“I’ll be fine Peri! Don’t downplay yourself like that. Sure, I could stand to drink a lot tonight, but I don’t think I can really have fun unless I know you’re having fun too.” She gave her a gentle shoulder nudge, “That’s what really matters to me, honestly.”

Peridot blushed a little at that. She was still getting used to being in regular contact with her old friend, so the fact that she still cared about her after so long apart flattered her more than she cared to admit. Returning her gaze to meet Lapis’ she didn’t realize just how close they were at that moment. She’d never seen Lapis’ face this close up before. There looked like there were specks of gold in her blue eyes, and- were those freckles?

Suddenly her focus was broken when Amethyst made her loud return, a pair of small cups held in her hands.

“Alright ladies, drink up! Responsibly.” She shot the pair finger guns once they’d taken their drinks, Peridot staring down into hers in embarrassment as she realized she’d just been staring silently at Lapis’ face for stars knows how long. Thankfully, her taller companion didn’t seem phased by her behaviour at all, laughing and taking a sip of her drink before relinquishing her grip on Peridot’s hand to return Amethyst’s gesture, complete with sound effects and a wink.

“Sure thing!” She replied as Peridot chuckled a little to herself. It was funny; To the outsider, Lapis came across as cold, cool and intimidating. However, Peridot knew that underneath that exterior Lapis was actually a huge dork.

It was cute. Adorable, even.

She immediately shook that thought out of her head. No. Those weren’t appropriate thoughts.

Instead of acknowledging her increased heart rate and flushed cheeks, she turned her attention to her glass; taking a sip she scrunched up her nose a little. It tasted a little different than last time, less sweet. Amethyst, noticing her expression, chuckled.

“Yeah, sorry about that, I thought it’d be a good idea to mix it with some juice instead of giving it to you straight. Those sugary drinks do kinda sneak up on ya… As you probably know.”

“Indeed. Unfortunately a little late.” Peridot replied, a small smile on her face “well, you live and you learn I suppose! Thank you, though.”

Amethyst gave her a thumbs up before once again vanishing. Peridot felt disappointment at her disappearance; she’d actually enjoyed her company the previous time despite her initial trepidations, and really wished she would have stuck around to talk more. However, Lapis was quick to reroute her attention by wrapping her fingers around her arm and tugging her to one of the nearby seating areas. Her touch alone was enough for Peridot’s skin to break out in goosebumps, which she tried to repress but to no avail. What was this woman doing to her? Well, whatever it was she hoped it would clear up soon; she was just here to catch up with her old school friend, nothing more. Nope. Nothing at all.

Unfortunately, her hopes were slowly dashed as the evening wore on. While the two of them sat and talked, Peridot found herself taking in Lapis’ appearance for longer and longer periods of time. The way her hair framed her face, the way the corners of her eyes crinkled when she smiled, the way she tried to cover her mouth to hide a snort when laughing at one of Peridot’s terrible jokes. She’d catch herself staring and return to her drink to hide her embarrassment, but the more she drank the worse it got, and funnily enough the less she minded.

Eventually, Lapis got restless; the pair of them had consumed a decent amount of alcohol at this point and were definitely feeling the effects. Peridot was brought out of her daze when her companion hopped up out of her chair and stretched, her shirt riding up slightly and giving Peridot a decent view of her toned stomach; something that the blonde had to mentally slap herself about when she realized she was staring. Once again Lapis seemed to remain oblivious, which Peridot was eternally thankful for.

“Hey, I think they’re turning the music up!” The tanned girl exclaimed excitedly as she turned to face Peridot with a grin. “Wanna dance? We can stay out here instead of getting squashed indoors.” Peridot chewed her lip. There were several folks already gathering in the open area in front of her, and the music was definitely getting louder, but she was hesitant about moving after the fiasco last time. Plus, she didn’t dance. She drummed her fingers on her glass and gave an awkward chuckle. “You go on ahead, I just want to finish my drink first.” A brief look of disappointment crossed Lapis’ face, but she nodded and left her friend be.

Peridot immediately felt guilty for leaving Lapis hanging, especially since she’d restricted her own alcohol consumption to be in solidarity with the blonde. She felt like a bit of an asshole. Sighing, she took another sip of her drink and watched Lapis as she danced. She’d forgotten just how good of a dancer her friend was; her sense of rhythm was impeccable, hardly missing a beat as she swayed her hips. This time, when Peridot realized she was staring, she found herself reluctant to stop.

She couldn’t take her eyes off her. 

She’d always known Lapis had an athletic physique; she’d dedicated much of her time during high school to the local swim team and clearly she’d continued some form of exercise after graduating too. This was evident when the tanned woman lifted her arms, giving Peridot another glimpse of her midriff as well as the muscle definition in her arms. Peridot still couldn’t fathom why someone like her would want to be friends with a short nerd like herself, but she was eternally grateful. Sighing softly she rested her head in her free hand and just watched, a dreamy expression on her face.

Lapis truly was amazing.

Soon after however, she noticed one of the other partygoers was making their way closer and closer to her friend. It wasn’t an accident either, as their eyes were clearly locked onto the blue-haired girl. Lapis sensed their presence and glanced over, giving a small smile before continuing on with her dance. The dancer clearly perceived this as a signal to go ahead, and began to dance along with her, reaching out a hand to place it on her waist.

Peridot sat bolt upright, her brow scrunching together in a glower as she watched the scene unfold. Lapis didn’t seem to mind the attention, or maybe she was too focused on her dancing to care. Either way, Peridot was _not_ happy. She placed her glass roughly on the floor and stood up, practically stomping over with her fists clenched. She wasn’t even bothering to think why she was so angry, all she knew was that no one should be touching Lapis like that.

As soon as she reached them, Lapis spotted her out of the corner of her eye and turned to face her, a broad smile on her face.

“Peri! You’ve finally come to dance!” She exclaimed, gleefully throwing her arms around her friend’s neck and pulling her into a hug. Peridot froze for a moment, but looking over her friend’s shoulder and noticing the all too friendly dancer stepping back from them, she gave them a look which sent them scurrying off back into the crowd. 

Lapis meanwhile, relinquished her hold on her friend’s body and instead took her hands in hers, interlocking their fingers and tugging Peridot forwards.

“C’mon!”

At that moment Peridot felt herself regretting her actions. Of course the alcohol had lowered her inhibitions a little, but she still was shy about dancing. She stumbled slightly and opened her mouth to protest, but Lapis pulled her even closer, giving her a warm, genuine smile.

“I’m so happy you came to join me! I was getting kinda lonely here by myself” she gave a pout. Peridot knew it was a playful one, but the expression made her stomach tie in knots. It wasn’t fair for Lapis to be looking at her like that with her big, blue eyes. Not fair at all.

She hoped the poor garden lighting was enough to hide her complexion, as she was sure she was blushing again. She mentally cursed her skin for being so pale. She gulped and gave a nervous laugh, now trying to look everywhere but Lapis’ face.

“Aha, yeah, sorry...” she replied, shifting from foot to foot; Lapis just chuckled and tugged on her hands again.

“Don’t be sorry! I’m just glad you’re here now. Dance with me, Peri!” She spun the shorter girl around, startling her, before releasing her and beginning to shake her hips back and forth. Peridot swallowed, a smile spreading across her face as the glee emanating from her companion motivated her to join. She began to bob shyly to the music at first, but as Lapis cheered her on and took her hand once more, she felt more and more motivated to give it her all.

It wasn’t long before the pair of them were dancing together, both laughing and not worried about whether or not either of them was going to make a misstep. That was all part of the fun. Peridot couldn’t believe how easy this was. She’d been overthinking the whole dancing thing for far too long, was it always this fun to dance? She’d have to do it more often!

...Only with Lapis though, of course.

As the current song faded out and was replaced by something quieter, Lapis hooked her arm around Peridot’s shoulders and leaned against her, panting to catch her breath. Both of them were starting to feel exhausted at this point, but Lapis had been the more enthusiastic out of the two of them. 

“Stars, I look a mess” She panted, to which Peridot just stared at her blankly.

“A mess? You look amazing!” She blurted out, turning a dark shade of red the minute she realized she’d said it out loud. Lapis looked at her, sweat glistening off her forehead and her hair partially covering her face. She giggled.

“Heh. You’re too sweet, Peri” she said with a grin before leaning in and placing a quick kiss on her cheek.

Peridot mentally bluescreened.

Lapis, meanwhile, seemed oblivious to the impact her show of affection had, instead looking about her and chewing her bottom lip.

“Eh, it’s getting kinda late now, this dancing has tired me out too... Fancy calling it a night?”

Peridot stared at her in silence for several moments, blushing all the way from her forehead to her neck. That. That didn’t just happen, right? Her brain was having trouble comprehending it and her body was frozen in place. It took a concerned look from Lapis to shake her out of her stupor. She coughed and ran a hand through her hair, avoiding eye contact with her friend completely.

“Ah- sure! Sure, let’s go. Heh.”

She felt Lapis eyeing her briefly before she grabbed her hand again, guiding her back through the house with what Peridot thought was a spring in her step.

This time, Peridot was able to walk herself home, and she insisted on it, despite Lapis’ concern. She knew it would probably be better to have company while walking home so late in the day, but right now she wasn’t sure how to act around Lapis, and was anxious she’d make a mistake. Seemed the alcohol was starting to wear off too.

Collapsing onto her bed as soon as she got home, she sighed heavily and rolled onto her back, staring up at the ceiling with a perplexed expression. Her mind was spinning, she was having trouble coming to terms with how she was feeling and it didn’t make sense. Why was she acting like this? Friends gave friends kisses on the cheek all the time, it shouldn’t be such a big deal.

So why did it feel like her heart was about to pound out of her chest every time she thought about it?

Swallowing, she gingerly reached up and placed her fingers gently on the cheek Lapis had kissed, her face turning pink as she swallowed nervously. Maybe a good night’s sleep would help sort things out.

Her theory was swiftly debunked.

\------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The next few days her brain was just constantly whirring, leaving her unable to focus. Every time she let her mind wander, it would go straight back to Lapis; it was frustrating, even more so when she didn’t understand why she was being impacted this much. Lapis had seemed to have picked up on her mood change too, because she’d received more texts from her than usual. It was sweet, and Peridot really appreciated it, but every time she saw Lapis’ name pop up on the screen she wanted to chuck her phone out the nearest window and hide. It became clearer and clearer exactly what was happening, but she refused to acknowledge it.

Unfortunately for her, the truth became harder to deny as the days went on, until one day while staring at her laptop screen, trying to focus on her notes, her mind could focus on one thing and one thing only.

She had feelings for Lapis Lazuli.

In hindsight, it made sense; she’d never accepted her crush on her during their high school days and hadn’t been able to truly get over her ever since. She’d been sure that such an immature crush would have faded over time, but as it had returned in force, many years later, she really couldn’t deny it anymore. She groaned loudly and slumped in her chair, screwing her eyes shut in frustration. That was it, she had to do something; her mind wouldn’t settle until she confronted this head-on… But to do that, she had to talk to Lapis. That scared her.

She knew it was the obvious thing to do, but just the thought of it made her head spin. What if it went wrong? What if Lapis became uncomfortable and didn’t speak to her again? She could feel herself panicking over it and took several deep breaths, deciding it’d be best to leave those thoughts alone for now. Lapis cared about her a lot. These fears were unfounded.

She pushed the thoughts to the back of her mind for the rest of the day, but they came back full force the next morning. It took another full day of pacing, cursing, and general overthinking before she finally set a plan in motion.

 _‘If she asks me to go to the party next weekend, I’ll tell her,’_ she thought to herself, glancing over at her phone, _‘If she doesn’t, then I’ll just leave it for now.’_

It sounded like a great idea in theory, as it meant that she’d be able to talk to her soon and get everything over and done with. However, a big part of her secretly wished she wouldn’t get that text.

But low and behold, Friday afternoon, her phone buzzed with the message she had been waiting for.

 **_Lapis:_ ** _Hey, you coming to the party tomorrow? It’s gonna be a smaller one. Apparently Pearl wasn’t too happy about the mess left last time.  
_

Peridot swallowed. She stared at the text silently for what seemed an age, before taking a deep breath and typing out a reply.

 **_Peridot:_ ** _Sure, I’ll be there.  
_

The minute she pressed send, she shoved her phone under a nearby cushion to avoid looking at it any longer. What had she gotten herself into?

Taking that now familiar route to the party felt different to the first time. There were nerves, sure, but for a completely different reason. She masked it well enough though, Lapis seeming to be too busy talking to see the nerves in Peridot’s eyes. For a moment, she thought about spilling her guts right then and there to avoid the tension; she could say her piece, get it over and done with and then either go forward to the party or bolt off home if things went sour. However… When she cleared her throat and Lapis turned to look at her, her stomach dropped to her shoes and any courage she had left her. She swallowed and pretended it had been a cough, flicking her eyes away from her confused friend and just wishing they were at the part already. Stars, she needed a drink.  
  
“You good there, Peri?” She heard Lapis ask, her own step faltering as she realized just how much she loved the sound of her friend’s voice. She cleared her throat and nodded, giving an awkward grin.

“Aha, sure! Just got something caught in my throat is all. I’m fine, really.” Lapis gave her a look but seemed to believe her. The two of them spent the last few minutes of the walk in silence, Peridot staring straight ahead, all the while racking her brain to find some sort of conversation starter. As stressed as she was, she didn’t want to make things obvious or, more importantly, make this night uncomfortable for Lapis. She cared about her first and foremost.

Thankfully, they reached the building sooner than expected, Lapis once again taking her friend’s hand and guiding her to her location of choice. This time, her reaction to Lapis’ touch made all the more sense, causing Peridot to reflexively shiver at the sensation. She spotted Amethyst and gave her wave, which the Latina quickly returned; Peridot had hoped she’d come over and strike up a conversation, provide some sort of distraction, but it became apparent that wasn’t an option, as the girl was clearly in the middle of a conversation with several partygoers. She bit back a groan of frustration.

As time wore on, she regretted her decision more and more. She had no desire to tell Lapis how she felt, and when she did, one look at her smiling face would cause all courage to go out the window. She wanted to back away, put as much space between the two of them as possible; but she couldn’t bring herself to leave her friend’s side.

She drank a lot that night, not as much as the first time but still enough to get her boozy pretty quickly. She found the more alcohol she drank, the less stressed she became, which in turn let her just enjoy the party and forget the reason she’d come here in the first place. Lapis, however, didn’t seem to be on the same page. She drank a bit here and there but was constantly checking to make sure Peridot didn’t drink too much, which did frustrate the blonde a little, but she understood. Lapis was looking out for her. Lapis cared about her. Her heart squeezed at the thought and she was once again thankful for the terrible lighting that hid her blushing face.

This time, the pair of them stayed partying throughout the night and into the hours of the early morning. Peridot hadn’t even registered how late it was until she noticed that less and less people were joining in on the dancing and games; there were many unconscious or thoroughly inebriated students strewn about the chairs and floor. That made her chuckle a little, feeling somewhat better about her own previous predicament as it was nothing compared to the situations some of these drunkards were exhibiting. The sound system was eventually unplugged, leaving the house and garden in almost total silence saved for the grumbles and snores coming from those already out cold. Peridot had been in the process of gingerly making her way to the kitchen while trying her best not to trip over the living obstacle course, when Lapis grabbed her arm and tugged her backwards. She wobbled and yelped in surprise, turning to the taller girl and giving her an indignant look. Lapis just grinned, a look in her eyes that Peridot couldn’t quite read.

“C’mon,” she whispered, giving Peridot’s arm another tug, “party’s pretty much dead, let’s find ourselves somewhere to sit.”

“Wha… why?” Peridot asked, blinking in confusion. Lapis giggled.

“You’ll see. Now come on! I got an extra drink for you.” She raised her other hand, which held two unopened containers of… something. Well, whatever it was, it certainly made her journey for booze much easier; she sighed a little and nodded.

“Alright, lead the way,” She muttered, stumbling yet again when Lapis gleefully tugged on her arm. Lapis seemed to take control a lot when she was drunk.

Peridot refused to admit that she actually liked it.

They found a backroom that was mostly empty, aside from a couple of other students passed out in the corner. Lapis quickly took a seat and patted the space beside her, which Peridot awkwardly settled in and took the drink she proffered to her with a small smile.

“Thanks...” She mumbled as she popped the can open, “so.. Why’d you bring me back here, anyway? I thought you would’ve wanted to go home by now.”

“Nah, I had an idea,” Lapis replied, leaning forward and grinning again “I don’t want to leave the party just yet, let’s have a little fun, huh? I want to play a game.”

Peridot furrowed her brow.

“Game…? What sort of game?”

“Truth or dare.”

Peridot stared at her for a moment, then snorted.

“Really? Isn’t that a game teenagers play?” She took a swig of her drink, Lapis folding her arms and pouting slightly.

“Hey! Come on, it’ll be fun! Besides,” she reached over and gently placed her hand on Peridot’s thigh, “I want to spend more time with you. Please? For me?”

 _‘Oh stars, not those eyes again.’_ Peridot thought as she met her friend’s gaze. She was weak. Sighing in resignation, she gestured to Lapis with her free hand.

“Alright, alright. Nothing too rude though.”

“I’d never,” Lapis giggled.

She kept to her word. The first several rounds were all truths that were innocent enough, Peridot refusing to even consider picking dare over fear that she’d have to do something that would embarrass her even more than her last incident. Their alcohol was long since drunk and Peridot was all the more intoxicated, causing her to zone out halfway through picking truth and subsequently Lapis’s next question. She blinked.

“Uh- sorry, what was that?”

Lapis chuckled and rolled her eyes.

“I said, do you like me?”

Peridot stared at her, perplexed.

“... Of course I do, Lapis. You’re one of my best friends-”

Lapis held up a hand, shaking her head.

“No no, that’s not what I meant. Let me specify for you-” she looked Peridot in the eye. “Do you have a thing for me?”

Silence.

Peridot sat back in her seat, trying her hardest to keep her cool. Did she know? How? Was she that obvious? Had she been sober she’d have lied reflexively and gotten out of there, but at that moment she couldn’t bring herself to. Besides, this was what she’d wanted to tell Lapis from the start, and now... Here was the opportunity to do so, right in front of her.

 _‘Well’_ She thought as she gently put her drink down on the nearby table _‘I did choose truth so…’  
_

“Yeah, I like you a lot, Lazuli.”

Lapis tilted her head, a smile gracing her lips.

“Really? That’s-”

“Let’s just keep going” Peridot interrupted quickly, taking the smile as a good sign and not wanting to dwell on it any longer. “Truth or dare?”

“Dare” came Lapis’ reply as she eyed her friend playfully. Peridot swallowed.

“I-” She took a deep breath. Fuck it, what did she have to lose? The way Lapis was looking at her was making her feel things. “-I dare you to kiss me.” She regretted it the minute she said it, but before she knew it, Lapis had moved from her seat and was now hovering over her.

“Heh,” she smirked and leaned in, resting a hand on Peridot’s shoulder, “I’ve been wanting to do this… All night.”

Peridot barely had a chance to even register what was happening before Lapis’ lips were pressed against hers.

First kisses were always depicted as delicate affairs; shy touches and gentle words with lighting perfect to set the mood. But this wasn’t some romantic movie. Both of them were thoroughly drunk, their inhibitions low and their instincts high. The minute Lapis kissed her, Peridot reached up a hand and tangled it in her blue hair, whimpering against her lips as the taller woman practically pinned her down. A hand wrapped firmly around her waist, causing the blonde to inhale sharply and give Lapis access to her mouth, which she took greedily.

Peridot felt as if her brain was on the fritz as she felt Lapis’ tongue sliding over hers; she tasted strongly of alcohol, but there was something else, something so uniquely Lapis that Peridot couldn’t get enough of. Logic and reason were no longer even an option at this point. She didn’t care if anyone one heard her, she just wanted Lapis, and wanted her to know how much she wanted her. She let out a broken moan as Lapis pressed her knee firmly between her legs, breaking the kiss briefly to take a breath before being drawn back into another deep kiss.

“L-Lapis” She gasped out between kisses “I-” She whimpered, her hips bucking reflexively against the gentle pressure between her legs. Lapis chuckled breathlessly and kissed her again.

“Mmm… Yeah, Peri?” Her hands trailed up and down Peridot’s sides, toying with the hem of her shirt as she moved from her lips to her neck, licking and sucking at the sensitive flesh and causing Peridot to squeak.

“I want you- Please-” She bit her lip as her neck was sucked on aggressively, “-More-!”

Lapis kissed up to the blonde’s ear and sucked on the soft lobe, her hands still roaming the shorter girl’s body.

“Don’t have to tell me twice.” She purred as she gave her cheek a soft kiss before returning to her neck, this time sinking her teeth into the pale skin and sucking hard.

Peridot groaned and bucked her hips again as one hand still clung frantically to Lapis’ head. She’d never done anything like this before, she didn’t know what to do, but her body was telling her she wanted this, no matter what. Lapis’ body shifted as she moved to the next patch of untouched skin, pressing her knee even harder against Peridot’s crotch. The girl beneath her panted, her hips bucking once more; she couldn’t stop herself, it felt so good… She grasped onto Lapis’ waist with her free hand and rocked her hips frantically back and forth, stimulating herself against Lapis’ knee like some overly hormonal teenager. She didn’t care; she didn’t even stop to think, she just kept going.

Lapis didn’t seem to mind. If anything, it was quite the opposite. She returned to Peridot’s mouth with a growl and took possession of it again as her hands began tugging at the collar of the nerd’s dark green shirt. Peridot felt her shift against her and whimpered when she realized she’d settled herself into a similar position above her as Peridot was below. Lapis pulled back from the kiss, eyeing Peridot with hooded eyes before responding to Peridot’s movements with her own. Peridot stared up at her transfixed, cheeks flushed as she watched the tanned woman slowly grinding herself against Peridot’s upper thigh; her expression was gorgeous and Peridot would have stared at it forever had Lapis not resumed the kissing with a renewed hunger. 

The pair of them were a total mess, the alcohol flowing through their system had removed any shame, so now here they were on someone else’s couch, in a house full of sleeping partygoers, kissing and grinding against each other like their lives depended on it. Their muffled moans and whimpers echoed throughout the room, but they didn’t care at all, they were so busy, lost in each other.

Lapis tugged on Peridot’s shirt again, harder this time, making it clear what she wanted, Peridot didn’t even think and broke the kiss to give a quick nod before resuming with gusto. She felt the fabric of her t-shirt being pulled roughly up to expose her chest and stomach. Even in her drunken state the cold breeze caused her to reflexively lifted a hand to cover her chest, but it was quickly pushed aside and she squeaked as Lapis’ hands grasped onto her breasts eagerly and massaged them through her bra.

“Stars, I love these,” Lapis murmured as she groped and rubbed the soft mounds. “I love them so fucking much.” Peridot blushed a deep red at the words.

“Really?” She bit her lip and squirmed under the other woman’s touch. Lapis locked eyes with her.

“I do, I really do.” She replied breathlessly, “they’re so round, so soft...” She licked her lips and gave them a firm squeeze, prompting Peridot to squeak and arch her back. 

“Then they’re all yours” The blonde whispered, running her fingers through Lapis’ hair as her body shivered. She blushed even harder at those words, but she meant it. Hell, Lapis could do anything to her in that moment and she’d say yes, she just wanted Lapis’ hands on her. And her body. And her lips.

Lapis took those words to heart and could barely keep her hands to herself. She began kissing down Peridot’s neck, who sighed blissfully as she soaked up the physical attention. She barely noticed the sudden lack of friction between their lower halves before she felt Lapis’ hand slowly sliding down her stomach. She inhaled sharply, which caused Lapis to halt her ministrations and glance up at her, concern flashing across her face.

“You okay?” She asked, her tone soft. Peridot gulped but quickly nodded, leaning forward and kissing the tanned woman.

“Mhm,” she murmured, “Just surprised me, is all. Ticklish...” She was sure the blush on her face was now a permanent fixture at this point. Lapis nodded, giving a chuckle as she kissed Peridot again.

“Good...” Her hand slid further down, Peridot’s body tensing in anticipation; the sensation of her jeans being unbuckled made her heart pound harder, but she didn’t want it to stop. Lapis paused for a moment, her fingertips toying with the waistband of Peridot’s underwear. She seemed to enjoy teasing her, as a lazy grin spread across her mouths while Peridot squirmed and whined underneath her. “You make such cute noises...” She purred “Stars, you’re so cute, Peri.”

“S-stop teasing” Peridot groaned, bucking her hips, “please...” the last part came out more of a pathetic whimper rather than a demand; Lapis really had her under complete control. Her pleading quickly turned into a high-pitched whine as Lapis’ hand finally dipped below her waistband. It was then that it hit her just how inexperienced she was. She’d never had anyone’s hand except her own down there, and it was proving to be sensory overload. She moaned into Lapis’ mouth as she felt her fingers brush against her clit, then slowly dip between her outer lips.

“Fuck. You’re so wet” Lapis purred against Peridot’s lips, “I made you this wet...” Peridot could feel the smugness radiating off the woman on top of her, and she opened her mouth to make a witty retort but was cut off when Lapis began rubbing her clit with her thumb. If she’d thought she was loud before, that was nothing. She arched her back and let out a moan that reverberated throughout her body, Lapis watching her expression eagerly. She leaned down and kissed her cheek before murmuring lewd words into Peridot’s ear. It was all Peridot could do to moan in response as Lapis rubbed and teased her. Her hips jerked and her eyes clenched shut.

“Fuck me,” she panted, “please Lapis, just _fuck me!_ ”

Lapis smirked and kissed her again, muffling the groan Peridot made as she slowly pushed two fingers inside her. There was no resistance, Peridot’s inner walls were so slick both fingers were quickly inside her up to the knuckle. Lapis halted briefly, allowing the woman beneath her to adjust; this was met with protests, but Lapis silenced her with another kiss as she slowly curled her fingers and dragged them slowly back out. It was becoming increasingly difficult for Peridot to focus; her mind was already hazy from alcohol and now she had her friend’s hand between her legs, touching her in ways that made her squirm. She was on cloud nine.

Lapis eventually began picking up the pace and giving Peridot exactly what she was begging for; it wasn’t long before her fingers were pumping in and out of her without mercy, her thumb circling her clit with precision. The lewd noises coming from those ministrations made Peridot shove her head into the crook of Lapis’ neck out of embarrassment, but a tanned hand seized her chin and tilted it back up, Lapis looking down at her with lust drunk eyes.

“Don’t you dare hide that cute face from me. I want to watch you.” Her tone was demanding and Peridot shuddered reflexively, but she loved it. She loved having Lapis take control. Swallowing nervously, she submitted to her despite her shyness washing over her at the sensation of Lapis’ deep blue eyes on her. Her panting and moaning mixed in with Lapis’ words of praise echoed throughout the room as the two of them rocked together.

“L-Lapis” Peridot whimpered, “I’m close, I-” She bit her lip. Lapis softly kissed her cheek, her breath hot on her skin.

“Do it,” she replied, her tone softer now, “it’s okay Peri. I’m here. Let go.” Peridot trembled beneath her as the coil of pleasure forming in her core wound tighter and tighter. She clung onto Lapis for dear life before with a high-pitched moan she finally climaxed. Back arched, head thrown back, her eyes screwed shut as Lapis continued to work her through it, prolonging the blonde’s orgasm as much as she could before steadily slowing her ministrations.

When she finally withdrew her fingers, Peridot slumped against the couch, trying hard to catch her breath; her mind was spinning. The sensation of Lapis’ free hand gently stroking her cheek brought her round as she stared up at the tanned woman, dazed. Lapis chuckled.

“You okay?” She asked, tilting her head. Peridot swallowed and nodded as her already reddened cheeks darkened.

“Lapis that was- wow.”

“Glad you approve,” Was the mildly smug response as Lapis sat upright; she raised her other hand and eyed it, brow raised, “Damn,” she muttered, “Look at that; you really were wet for me, huh.”

Before Peridot could respond, Lapis brought the slick covered fingers to her lips and popped them in her mouth.

“Lapis!” She squeaked, “what are you doing!?” All she got in response was a low hum as Lapis sucked on her fingers softly before pulling them out with a soft ‘pop’.

“What?” She asked, smirking “I was just curious is all. Besides, you shouldn’t be embarrassed, you taste good.” The wink she threw Peridot’s way made her stomach twist, and she hid her face in her hands, letting out muffled squeals of protest. She heard Lapis chuckle above her. “Stop being so damn cute, Peri.” She purred, “you’re making me want to tease you more.”

“M’not cute” Peridot grumbled, slowly removing her hands from her face to glare indignantly at Lapis. The blue-haired woman snorted and shrugged.

“Alright, how about adorable then? Gorgeous? Hot? Sexy?”

“I’m not any of those!” Peridot whined, shaking her head and trying desperately to avoid Lapis’ gaze. There was silence as Lapis stared at her, then her eyes narrowed and she leaned down and kissed Peridot’s cheek.

“Listen to me.” She said firmly in her ear, “you are adorable. You’re cute as fuck,” She began kissing down Peridot’s cheek to her neck, punctuating every compliment with a hot, open-mouthed kiss against her pale skin. “You’re the hottest little nerd I know, with the more gorgeous curves-” she ran her tongue down Peridot’s chest and stopped at the top of her cleavage, “-and the most beautiful pair of boobs I’ve ever seen.”

Peridot let out a shaky breath and tried to form some manner of response, but as Lapis began kissing the exposed top of her breasts all she could do was whimper and arch into her touch. She felt Lapis’ lips curl into a smirk before continuing to tend to every inch of skin with her lips and tongue. It wasn’t until she felt Lapis’ hands slip around her back and start playing with the clasp of her bra that she came to her senses.

“W-wait!” She squeaked. When Lapis paused and looked up at her, confused, she swallowed and continued. “This isn’t fair, I’m almost naked and you’ve not taken a single thing off!”

Lapis blinked, then glanced down and giggled.

“Alright, fair play” she replied coolly as she sat up and grasped the hem of her tank top; in one swift motion, it was pulled up over her head and tossed it carelessly to one side. Peridot gawked at her unabashedly. If the blonde had thought Lapis looked good before, this was something else.

Her tanned skin looked exquisite, a toned stomach curving down in a perfect v-line that disappeared beneath her jeans. The blonde was just mesmerised.

“You can touch, you know...” Lapis said with a chuckle, biting her lip as she trailed a hand up her stomach. When the girl beneath her hesitated, she shifted back a little and pulled the girl up by her waist. “C’mon Peri. Touch me,” she purred, watching Peridot with seductive eyes, “I want you to touch me.”

That was all the encouragement Peridot needed. She reached out a hand and slowly pressed it against Lapis’ stomach; the other woman shuddered at the touch and bit her lip. Emboldened by the response, Peridot found herself quickly moving both hands across Lapis’ skin exploratively. It was so incredibly soft and she couldn’t help but lick her lips as the desire for more overtook her. She leaned in, planting a few kisses down Lapis’ neck and revelling in the soft sounds that came from the other woman’s mouth. 

“E-enjoying yourself?” Lapis asked, panting lightly. Peridot responded by latching onto Lapis’ neck and sucking on it roughly as she tried to draw more noises out of her. She felt Lapis’ hands grip onto her shoulders and the low moan that graced her ears was reward enough… but she wanted more. As her fingers trailed upwards and she tugged at the base of Lapis’ bra, she heard a giggle.

“Tut tut...” Lapis said softly, “you can’t tell me to stop taking off your bra then play with mine, that’s not very fair.” She slid her arms around Peridot’s waist as the blonde released her lips from her neck and looked at her, flushing with embarrassment but the teasing glint in Lapis’ eyes made her halt any sort of apology before she had the chance to form it. Lapis giggled “tell you what, Peri: I’ll show you mine if you show me yours...” She bit her lip and reached behind her own back, tilting her head to the side and eyeing Peridot playfully.

Peridot didn’t even hesitate this time. She nodded and tugged her t-shirt up over her head, chucking it behind her, then fumbled with her clasp; cursing under her breath at it taking so long, and by the time she’d finally unclipped it and was pulling the straps down her shoulders, she glanced up to find Lapis had already removed hers and was dangling it from her outstretched finger. Peridot stopped and stared.

Lapis completely topless was a sight to behold; she wanted to gaze at her body for so much longer, but the playfully expectant look in Lapis’ eyes prompted her to break her line of sight and frantically pull her bra completely off. She dropped it to one side and, before she knew it, Lapis’ hands were on her. She gasped as the tanned hands began to softly massage her breasts.

“Stars...” Lapis muttered under her breath, her thumb brushing over a pale pink nipple and making it jump to attention, “you’re so fucking hot, Peri.”

“Me?” Peridot spluttered, “have you seen yourself? You’re a god-eep!” She squeaked as Lapis leaned down and drew one of her nipples into her mouth, sucking on it softly before withdrawing and pulling the other woman closer.

“Shh...” she murmured before kissing her deeply.

The two of them began to slowly make out once more, bare chests pressed firmly against each other’s as their hands roamed each other’s backs and sides. Their kisses were sloppy, their touches were frantic; both of them so desperately wanted more of the other. They were so lost in each other they barely even registered the change in position until Peridot’s back made contact with the couch once again. She gasped into Lapis’ mouth, a gasp quickly cut off by the other’s tongue that wrestled with hers greedily.

“Peri...” Lapis panted out between kisses “I want you-” She groaned as one of Peridot’s hands slipped lower and squeezed her backside, “-I want you so bad.” Her hands trailed lower and her mouth followed suit, planting wet kisses down Peridot’s neck and chest. She settled briefly on her chest, peppering them with kisses and licks before continuing on down. When she reached Peridot’s waistband she looked up at her, now knelt on the floor, panting.

It took Peridot a moment to come out of her daze and register exactly what was going on; her eyes widened, and she stared back at the other woman in silence for a moment before giving a nod.

Lapis didn’t even need to speak this time, Peridot knew what she wanted, and she wanted it too.

She lifted her hips as Lapis pulled down her jeans, giving the woman easier access, which she eagerly took advantage of. Peridot barely had a moment to register the sensation of being exposed before Lapis, having pulled Peridot’s jeans around her ankles, pulled the other woman’s hips closer to her and began to kiss her inner thigh. She was startled, but quickly settled into the sensation of Lapis’ soft lips against her skin. The older woman's hands slid up her thighs as she continued her ministrations, slipping around and cupping Peridot’s backside. She gave it a brief squeeze and groaned as she slowly kissed her way higher and higher. She paused for a moment, looked up at Peridot’s flushed face, then dove between her legs.

Peridot felt like she was going to combust.

Lapis wasn't slow at all this time. Her tongue slid over the blonde’s folds in a broad lick before delving between them and lapping at her eagerly. Her hands gripped Peridot’s ass and held her in place, digging into the soft skin as she ate her out like her life depended on it. 

Peridot slapped a hand across her mouth to stop the startled moan that rumbled in her throat, her other hand grasping frantically for something to steady herself. She settled on Lapis’ hair and tangled her fingers in it, tugging accidentally and prompting a growl that Peridot could feel vibrating against her. She hadn’t realized how sensitive she still was after her last orgasm until Lapis’ lips wrapped around her clit, the tip of her tongue rubbing it in swift circles. She couldn’t hold back this time and moaned loud and long as her thighs squeezed Lapis’ head.

“Lapis, c-careful!” She whimpered, “keep going like that and I’m gonna- ah!” Lapis had partially relinquished her grip on Peridot’s ass and had quickly snaked her arm back, two fingers once again sliding deep inside Peridot’s sensitive entrance. Peridot’s body stiffened in shock before her hips rocked forward, pressing herself against the source of the stimulation. Several moments later her orgasm juddered through her and she inhaled sharply as her thighs once again tightened around Lapis’ head, threatening to suffocate her. When her body slowly settled down her muscles relaxed and Lapis finally pried herself from between Peridot’s legs.

She was panting hard, face and hand sticky with Peridot’s juices. The sight made Peridot flush harder and bite her lip; her flustering only getting worse when Lapis proceeded to lick her fingers and lips clean, moaning softly at the taste. Her blue eyes drifted up to the panting woman slumped onto the couch and she let out a chuckle, crawling back up onto the couch and straddling her naked form.

“You came pretty quick there,” she commented, wiping the rest of her face with the back of her hand. Peridot whined.

“That’s cause you already made me cum once, my body was still sensitive!” 

“Hmm… fair point. Shame though,” she nuzzled into Peridot’s neck “I’d have liked to stay down there a little longer, you make some gorgeous noises.”

At this point, Peridot was beginning to find herself handling the lewd comments far better than before; instead of hiding her face, she gave a little huff and shifted in her seat as Lapis rubbed up against her. 

“I-” she bit her lip “I want to make you feel like that.” Lapis sat up and stared at her. She continued, “Can I…?” She gestured to Lapis’ lower half; the woman glanced down, then blushed slightly and quirked her brow.

“You wanna try it?” She asked, rubbing Peridot’s sides absentmindedly. Peridot nodded. “Alright, get on your knees then.” She winked as she stood up and slowly shimmied out of her jeans.

Peridot quickly got up, kicked her jeans off along with her sneakers and knelt on the floor as Lapis tossed her clothes to one side and sat on the couch, totally nude. She watched Peridot ogle at her for a moment before slowly spreading her legs and gesturing to the blonde.

“I’m all yours” She purred.

Peridot didn’t waste any time; she settled herself between Lapis’ thighs and gave a few cursory licks as she leaned in. Above her, Lapis moaned and rocked her hips forward. Encouraged, Peridot began to lap at her soft folds eagerly, with no rhythm or reason. She just wanted to please Lapis.

It wasn’t until she decided to try tending to Lapis’ clit like she had to her and accidentally got too eager with her teeth that she felt a hand on her head, tugging slightly.

“Peri… stop.” Lapis panted, prompting the other girl to pull her head back and stare at Lapis with worried eyes. Seeing her expression, Lapis let out a soft sigh, “Come up here,” she said, beckoning the baffled woman back up onto the couch. “I think we might have to save that for another time,” she said, biting her lip “you’re sweet, but you really were kinda all over the place down there. Don’t get me wrong, it did feel good at times, but… yeah.”

Peridot bowed her head.

“Sorry...” She mumbled, brows furrowed, “I just wanted to make you feel good like you did for me.”

“I know, you’re so sweet, Peri.” Lapis tilted the blonde’s head up and kissed her cheek “but honestly I kinda forgot you were a virgin.” She licked her lips, “you can still get me off though...”

As Peridot eyed her quizzically, she gently took her hand and guided it down her body, placing the small hand between her legs. “Here, let me show you.” Curling all but two of Peridot’s fingers backwards she guided her further “you just have to… slide these in- mmm…” She groaned as Peridot’s fingers slid slowly inside her. 

The blonde gulped and stared at Lapis with wide eyes, while the woman in question slowly began to slide her fingers in and out of her, panting softly.

“Just keep doing this,” she murmured, “start slow, think of it like you’re touching yourself, yeah?”

Peridot nodded and, under Lapis’ direction, slowly eased her fingers in and out of the tanned woman’s tight walls. It was incredibly soft and warm. Lapis was clearly just as aroused as she had been, because there was not an ounce of resistance as she moved within her. The noises the other woman was making made her want to speed up, but she waited until, through breathless moans, Lapis told her she could start moving faster. Which she did so, eagerly.

She watched Lapis’s face, finding herself transfixed by how her expressions shifted and changed as the pleasure mounted. She was just… beautiful.

“P-peri,” Lapis panted, “faster. Use your thumb...” She fumbled with Peridot’s hand and pressed her thumb firmly against her clit. Peridot knew what to do then, she’d done this to herself a million times. So as her fingers pumped in and out, she massaged the bundle of nerves in fast, regular circles; her fingers were cramping, her wrist feeling strained at such an unfamiliar angle, but she refused to stop until she’d pushed Lapis over the edge.

She didn’t have to wait much longer; Lapis’ head fell back and her eyes slammed shut as she let out a deep, blissful moan that made Peridot's stomach flip.

“Yes, Peri, yes-!” She whimpered before she gasped, her walls fluttering around the blonde’s fingers as she finally reached her peak. Peridot was transfixed by the beautiful view in front of her, but she kept her fingers moving, determined to ride out Lapis’ orgasm just as she had done for her. With a whimper, Lapis’ muscles relaxed and her breathing began to slow down; Peridot took it as her cue and slowly removed her fingers. Flicking her gaze between Lapis’ blissful face and her slick fingers, she bit her lip before bringing her hand to her face and giving her index finger a cursory lick. She’d not really tasted much in her previous enthusiastic endeavour, so now she was curious as to just why someone would do this. It… honestly, wasn’t that bad. She quickly slid both fingers into her mouth and licked them clean, much to Lapis’ surprise, then settled herself against her, gently stroking her hair.

“You’re uh- a fast learner,” Lapis panted out, cheeks flushed, “that felt amazing...”

“Really?” Peridot perked up, her eyes sparkling. She blushed, “I mean- I’m glad I could make you feel good too.”

“Dork...” Lapis whispered before pulling Peridot into another kiss.

The two of them spent several more hours together, kissing and touching each other’s bodies in lust-drunk bliss. When they finally passed out, legs and arms tangled together, they found themselves awake after only an hour as their bodies, bare to the elements, quickly became cold. At that point they knew even in their drunken minds that staying naked in a house full of people wasn’t a good idea; so they both fumbled about to find their clothes and dress themselves, giggling and tripping over things in the process. They snuck out of the house and staggered back to Lapis’ apartment as it was closest. As soon as they were indoors (Lapis dropped her keys several times in her attempt to open the front door) Peridot was tugged by the collar into the other woman’s room where they collapsed in a heap, falling asleep almost right away.

\-----------------------------------------------------------------

Peridot groaned as she slowly rolled over onto her side, eyes fluttering open. Her head ached, and she grimaced, rubbing her forehead and hoping it wouldn’t get too bad.

“You’re up,” Came a familiar voice from beside her. She blinked and looked over her shoulder; Lapis, hair a tousled mess, sat beside her, legs held to her chest. Peridot stared blankly at her in confusion. Slowly, groggily, she looked around her, taking in her surroundings. Where was she? This wasn’t her room… and why was Lapis there?

Then the events from last night came rushing back to her.

She sat up, wide-eyed, and stared at Lapis, mouth opening and shutting like a stranded fish.

“You-” She squeaked, “you and I, we-” her stomach churned and she took a deep breath, “the party. We got drunk-”

“.. Yeah.” Lapis’ response was soft and small; she fiddled with her fingers and refused to look Peridot in the eye. “I thought it had been a dream at first… then I woke up, and you were just…” she swallowed, “all curled up in my arms and, well,” she gestured to Peridot’s neck, “I don’t think those could be fake.”

Peridot lifted a hand to her throat, finding several tender spots that she suddenly registered were hickies. Lapis, too, was sporting a large purple mark just below her jaw. She remembered doing it; she remembered the noises Lapis had made... She remembered the words and touches and pleasure they gave each other…

Her face turned bright red, all the way down her neck and up to her ears. Lapis looked up at her and sighed.

“Look… I’m sorry. That wasn’t the smartest thing I could have done. We were both drunk, I thought it’d just make it easier to get some answers out of you, I didn’t think we’d get, you know...” her cheeks tinted pink, “that carried away.”

Peridot, still blushing, shook her head.

“Don’t apologize. You were right, we were _both_ drunk. What we did resulted from both of us making the decisions we did...” She trailed off. What was she supposed to say in this scenario? She’d never had any sort of drunken incident like this before. Lapis ended up being the one to break the silence.

“Do you… regret it?” Her tone sounded scared. Shy. Uneasy. Almost immediately, Peridot shifted closer to the tanned woman and grabbed her hand. 

“No.” She replied firmly, “Absolutely not. Look-” She took a deep break as Lapis watched her nervously, “you remember what I said during truth or dare, right? I said that I liked you. That I had a crush on you. I know you know because you had to specify the question. I wasn’t expecting that to happen at all, not in my wildest dreams, but-” She swallowed. Might as well be fully honest here. What did she have to lose? “I know I’m not the best at making decisions, and I don’t know much about stuff like this, but I know for sure that I do _not_ regret last night. You have no idea how amazing it was to just kiss you, let alone- well, you know… A-anyway. Please don’t feel bad. It was, uh, pretty amazing...”

There was silence for a moment as Lapis stared at her in shock, her breathing slow and shaky.

“... Really?” She finally whispered.

“Really,” Peridot replied, squeezing her hand tightly, “it really was.” She watched as Lapis visibly relaxed and laced her fingers with her own. 

“Okay, that’s good,” she mumbled, “I don’t think I could have forgiven myself if I’d done something to you that you regretted.” Peridot nodded and rubbed her thumb gently across the back of Lapis’ hand.

She licked her lips.  
  
“So… I guess we should probably talk about it. Properly, I mean.” Lapis nodded shyly, so she took a deep breath, “Okay. So. About the whole truth or dare thing. Why did you even ask me if I liked you? Because I’m sure I was pretty good at hiding it.”

Lapis snorted and ran a hand through her hair.

“For the record, I didn’t know beforehand,” She replied as she shifted in her “the reason- ugh how do I say this.” She chuckled dryly, “fuck, why am I so nervous about saying this? We literally had sex last night!” Both she and Peridot blushed at the words before she cleared her throat “Okay. Honestly? The reason I was asking was because I wanted to know if the feeling was mutual. If… if you felt the same way about me as I did about you.”

Peridot’s eyebrows shot up.

“Wait- You’ve been crushing on me??”

“Peridot, we just-”

“I know, I know! But even I know that sex with a person you just think is attractive is different to someone who you have genuine feelings for! Alcohol lowers your inhibitions and all that stuff.. You know?”

Lapis bit her lip and nodded.

“That’s fair..” She sighed “but yes, I’ve had a crush on you. For a while.”

“... For how long?”Lapis gulped and glanced at Peridot, who was eyeing her curiously.

“Uh… Probably shortly after we started hanging out again, I think?”

“Seriously?” Peridot gulped, “I had no idea.”

“Heh, I gathered. I tried to keep it to myself, really.” Lapis replied, “Acted as normal as I could, tried to push it away and not think about it too much but-” she sighed, “I tried getting back into the dating scene to help, but I just had no interest in anyone else… except you.”

“Huh...” Peridot tapped her lip. Now that she thought about it, she couldn’t recall Lapis having any sort of relationship in the times they’d spent together over the last few months. She was usually the type to always have someone on the go, or at the very least flirt her way around a party. She had done none of that, she’d spent almost all her time at parties… With Peridot.

Now it was all starting to make sense. Her heart rate sped up.

“So… what about you?” Lapis asked, still holding Peridot’s hand gently.

“Uh...” Peridot hadn’t thought this far ahead; of course, the question would naturally get turned around on her. Why did she think that was a good idea? But then again… this was a discussion that needed to happen. So.

“Just- don’t judge me for this, okay?” She cleared her throat, “It started around, aha, you know…. Junior year?”

“ _What!?_ ” Lapis stared at her, eyebrows almost disappearing into her hairline as her mouth dropped open in shock. “Peri, you’ve had a crush on me for _that long?_ Stars, why didn’t you say something!?”

“It wasn’t the _whole_ time!” Peridot protested “I was able to squash it down after graduation and I guess it just kinda vanished when we didn’t see each other anymore. I don’t… really know when it crept back up on me, but for the record, I only really came to terms with it last week, after the party.” She laughed shyly, “funnily enough… I was actually planning on telling you last night, but I got scared and chickened out. Talk about timing, huh?”

“... Wow,” Lapis murmured, scratching the back of her neck “so all that time I spent worrying when I could have confessed to you earlier instead. Stars...”

“Yeah, but I might not have reacted the way you wanted. Hell, Lapis, I was scared back in high school about telling you because I didn’t want to ruin our friendship- as cliché as that sounds-, so who knows if I’d have carried that subconsciously with me up until we reunited? Look. This isn’t… the most conventional way for two people to confess to each other, but it’s done now, we’ve been able to talk about it. Surely that’s all that matters?”

“Yeah. Yeah, you’re right Peri,” Lapis said as she let out a long sigh, “Honestly though, I’d have preferred doing this in a much more romantic way.”

“Eh, not all lives are like romantic movies,” Peridot replied with a lop-sided grin. Lapis just rolled her eyes and chuckled.

“True, true...” She trailed off and looked back down at her feet again. “So uh, about that.” She licked her lips, “since you like me, and I like you, could we maybe - I dunno- go on a date sometime? A proper one?”

Peridot’s heart just about skipped a beat.

She grasped both of Lapis’ hands in hers and shuffled closer.

“You mean… You want to give this a try?”

“Well, yeah.” Lapis looked up and met Peridot’s curious gaze, “we both know we’re attracted to each other, and you’re one of the people I trust more than anyone else in the world, so… Would you? Like to date?” She gave Peridot a nervous look.

Peridot bit her lip, then took a deep breath and nodded.

“Yeah,” she replied softly, “let’s do this.”

Lapis’ stared for a moment before her face broke into a broad smile, her eyes lighting up.

“Really?” She asked softly.

“Really.” Peridot replied, a warm smile spreading across her own face as the blush from earlier returned. Lapis’ blue eyes became watery, and she quickly rubbed them before clearing her throat and gently squeezing Peridot’s hands.

“Okay… one more question.”

“Sure?”

“... Can I kiss you?” Peridot didn’t even hesitate this time. She leaned forward and rested her forehead against Lapis’

“Of course.” she replied. The pair of them slowly leaned in until their lips met once again.  
  
This was nothing like their first kiss. There was no alcohol, no high sex drives, no clashing of teeth or tongue; it was soft, gentle. Peridot slowly freed a hand and gently stroked Lapis’ cheek as they kiss, trying to keep the edges of her mouth from turning upwards into a stupid grin.

She was kissing Lapis Lazuli. 

Neither of them wanted it to end, so even when their lips broke contact they remained in each other’s embrace, looking into each other’s eyes softly. Lapis was the first to talk again.

“... Wow...” She breathed, gently stroking Peridot’s hair, “when I first invited you to that party weeks ago, I’d have never even thought about… this…” Peridot leaned into her touch and sighed.

“Heh, me neither. However...” She blushed, “we _might_ want to take a break from those for a while.”

“Huh?” Lapis blinked, confused “why?”

“Lapis… we had sex in an unlocked room, in a house full of unconscious people, some of whom _were in the same room as us while we did it._ There is _no way_ we got away with all that noise without _someone_ waking up.”

“... Ah. Good point...” Lapis snorted, “well, hopefully I don’t get a text from Amethyst asking about it.”

“Oh, Clod. Yeah, I hope not. I’ve only just started making friends with her! Oh, stars this is embarrassing.” Peridot sighed and slumped into the crook of Lapis’ neck.

The tanned woman chuckled and gently guided the pair of them fully onto the bed. She wrapped her arms around Peridot’s waist and nuzzled into her hair as they snuggled up together.

“We’ll worry about that later.” She said gently, “for now, let’s just focus on sleeping off these hangovers, yeah? My head is still thudding like no one’s business.”

Peridot sighed.

“Good idea...” She shyly peeked up at Lapis, biting her lip. “But, could I maybe have another kiss?” Lapis snorted and leaned down, brushing a lock of Peridot’s blonde hair out of her face.

“C’mere, cutie.” She whispered. Peridot squirmed a little at the soft words and giggled, poking Lapis’ cheek.

“You’re so sappy.” she teased, prompting Lapis to quirk a brow.

“Oh really? Am I now?” She said, a devilish grin spreading across her face, “do you have a problem with that, sweetie pie?”  
  
“Noo, shh!”  
  
“Baby girl? Little snookums?”  
  
“Stooop!” Peridot whined, pouting as Lapis rolled over, cackling and shaking her head. At that moment, it felt like old times again; at the core of it all, they were still the same two people who’d struck up a friendship years ago. Only now, things were a little different. It was new, and scary, but despite it all, Peridot wanted it more than anything. It was worth it.

Lapis was worth it.

**Author's Note:**

> Special thanks to my friends Trystine and Feather for helping me edit this monster! 
> 
> It's been a long time since I've written anything; I have a huge backlog of unfinished ideas that I've been sitting on for months, so now that I've gotten back into doing it regularly, I'm aiming to be more active once again.
> 
> Hope you'll stick around!


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